Organisations throughout the world recently have been issuing guidelines about reducing levels of salt in our diet and it appears that the general target has been to try and cut in half our daily sodium intake from 3,500 milligrams per day to between 1,200 and 2,300 mg a day.



The danger with this is that in our enthusiasm to cut back on our sodium which has a detrimental effect on high blood pressure, as a side effect we cut back on other nutrients such as magnesium, calcium and potassium which actually have a more beneficial effect on our blood pressure.

So it would appear that the concept of eating a healthy well-balanced diet is what we should be aiming at and I know this may sound as a statement of the obvious but all that it requires is a little bit of careful forethought and planning.

It is certainly not beyond the majority of folk and is a target we should all be aiming at if we are serious about dealing with high blood pressure.

What is it about high blood pressure that makes it a problem and when ignored so lethal?

Tragically, as most sufferers have yet to be diagnosed, the majority of high blood pressure sufferers are unaware of their condition.

The majority of sufferers of high blood pressure, if undiagnosed go years without being aware of their condition, the so called "Silent Killer".

There are certain signs that can be a bit of a give away with regards to high blood pressure and these should not be left unattended if observed.

Some of the following can be found to be included as symptoms: Dizziness, Ringing in the Ears , Blurred Vision, Depression .

Though the above can indicate high blood pressure it has to be emphasised that they might just as easily indicate other associate conditions.

OK, we have all heard the term high blood pressure but what exactly does it mean?

Well, if we are to go back to basics then the body's major tissues and organs are supplied and fed with blood pumped to them from the heart via a network of hose like vessels called arteries.

For about ninety percent of sufferers of high blood pressure, there is no single cause to be found and as such this type of high blood pressure is termed "Primary (Essential) High Blood Pressure".

In the majority of cases where the cause of the high blood pressure can be traced directly to one particular failing organ or cause then it is not uncommon for the associate problems to be treated successfully where this "Secondary High Blood Pressure" is not the direct cause of the associate high blood pressure.

In less than 10% of the incidences of high blood pressure diagnosed, the diagnosis falls into the category known as "Malignant Hypertension". This can quite often be discovered by accident or through an associate medical test such as an eye examination whereby an Optician can detect abnormalities through the effect they have on the eye.